Melroy, Spinrad Receive Senate Confirmation for NASA, NOAA Positions

The Senate has confirmed the nominations of Pamela Melroy as deputy administrator of NASA and Richard Spinrad as administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Melroy and Spinrad were confirmed on June 17, one day after the Senate Commerce Committee advanced their nominations to the full Senate on voice votes without having any debate, SpaceNews reported.

President Joe Biden nominated Melroy to the deputy administrator role on April 16. She is a former astronaut who held positions at the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation and at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

During the confirmation hearing, Sen. Maria Cantwell, chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, said that “it’s hard to imagine a more qualified person” for the NASA role. After the confirmation, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson tweeted that Melroy will be an “outstanding leader” as the agency continues to execute its mission.

In a statement, the newly confirmed deputy administrator shared that she looks forward to working with Nelson to ensure that the U.S. continues to lead in space and beyond.

Meanwhile, Spinrad was nominated to be administrator of the NOAA and undersecretary for oceans and atmosphere at the Department of Commerce on April 22.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Spinrad worked as assistant administrator of NOAA from 2003 to 2010. He also served as chief scientist for the agency between 2014 to 2017.

Spinrad returns to NOAA after spending the past 11 years at Oregon State University as a professor.